A haemophiliac campaigner who was infected with hepatitis C by the NHS 55 years ago has called on the British government to cough up and payout compensation for sufferers who are dying at a rate of one every four days.
Bruce Norval, who has lived in the capital and is from the Highlands, was infected by blood products through the NHS.
He says that he is worried that the UK government is in no rush to pay out compensation to eligible parties. He adds that the government faces a £12billion bill and that every death of a potential claimant will reduce that amount.
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The 58-year-old says that he does think that justice is just around the corner thanks to Sir Brian Langstaff, the chair of the Infected Blood Inquiry, but that he is still furious that he is being made to wait for payment, the Daily Record reports.
He said: “I was three when I was abducted into this project. What would you pay a soldier who had to fight a battle constantly for 55 years?
“I’d like to say it’s not about money but, at my age and after having to fight for every crumb of comfort for 33 years, there’s not really anything else that can improve my life and compensate my wife and kids.”
Bruce says that he was 26 when he was first informed that he had contracted hep C - a liver disease that causes cirrhosis and can be fatal.
He added: “My wife was five months pregnant. I’d had a whole series of tests to make sure I wasn’t HIV positive but now I was left, still in treatment, wondering if I’d infected my wife with hepatitis.
“She was healthy, happy and looking forward to being a mother but I had to tell her she needed to have a test for hepatitis, and that maybe everything we hoped for might be ruined.”
Bruce says that he could have expected around 40 years of earnings and pension contributions if he had been able to work a traditional job but that due to his health he has managed potentially four. Several extended periods of sickness meant that he was unable to hold down steady employment.
Bruce has had heart surgery recently and has put on weight, adding: “I have no idea how much time I have left with my wife and family. Those of us infected by blood products are dying at a rate of just about two a week. We’re running out of time. We need action now.”
Bruce remains angry at how infected blood products continued to be used, he believes, for many years after evidence first linked them to HIV and hepatitis C infections.
He will continue to shout for justice and said: “Sir Brian has recently instructed the Government to make awards to the parents of victims who died, and to start making interim payments in September, but no commitment has been given yet.
“I just hope now ministers will be persuaded to do the right thing. I understand it could cost somewhere around £12billion, roughly what they wrote off on faulty PPE provided by their mates during the pandemic.”
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